Visual Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Visual Designer - Human Interface Guidelines

Company: TEKsystems

Location: Warren, Michigan, United States

Job Type: CONTRACTOR

Category: Design Operations / GTM Operations (Focus on Design Systems & Documentation)

Date Posted: 2026-06-25

Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (Implied by "Senior Product/Visual Designer" and "Advanced" skill requirements)

Remote Status: Remote Solely

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive the design and evolution of a large-scale Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) website, acting as a critical component of the GTM operations by ensuring consistent and accessible design documentation.

• Translate complex, text-heavy design system guidance into clear, scannable, and visually compelling digital assets, enhancing user adoption and understanding.

• Collaborate closely with engineering teams to ensure pixel-perfect implementation of design system tokens, typography, and patterns, bridging the gap between design and development.

• Create original illustrations, UI assets, templates, and supporting visuals to enrich the documentation platform, making it a best-in-class resource.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the title is "Visual Designer," the responsibilities and emphasis on design systems, documentation, and collaboration with engineering indicate a strong operational component within the GTM function. This role is less about pure product design and more about operationalizing design consistency and knowledge through documentation. The "Senior" designation in the description suggests a need for a candidate who can work independently and drive initiatives.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Own and drive the ongoing visual design work for a significant Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) documentation website, ensuring its scalability and adherence to design system principles.

• Translate dense, text-based design system guidelines into intuitive, scannable, and visually engaging content, including static visuals, GIFs, and lightweight animations.

• Execute the replacement of legacy UI components with updated design system tokens, typography, and established patterns, maintaining visual integrity and consistency.

• Develop and create original illustrations, UI assets, templates, and other supporting visuals required for comprehensive documentation pages.

• Establish and maintain scalable visual frameworks that enhance the usability, learning experience, and overall adoption of design standards across the organization.

• Partner closely with engineering teams throughout the implementation phase, providing detailed visual QA feedback to ensure pixel-perfect execution.

• Contribute strategically to layout design, visual storytelling, and the overall user experience of the documentation platform to maximize clarity and impact.

• Support ongoing releases and enhancements to the HIG website, ensuring continuity and consistency with the broader design system.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities clearly highlight a focus on operationalizing design knowledge. The emphasis on "translating dense, text-heavy guidelines," "replacing legacy components," and "ensuring pixel-perfect implementation" points to a role that requires meticulous execution and a deep understanding of how design systems function operationally within a larger organization.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is listed, advanced proficiency in visual design principles and a strong portfolio demonstrating relevant experience are paramount. A Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communication, HCI, or a related field is often preferred in similar roles.

Experience: Proven experience in visual design, with a significant focus on design systems, documentation platforms, and collaboration with engineering teams. Experience in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment is essential.

Required Skills:

• Advanced visual communication skills with a demonstrated ability to simplify complex information into intuitive and compelling visuals.

• Strong illustration capabilities, including the creation of original assets and the enhancement of baseline references for documentation purposes.

• Proficiency in producing a variety of visual formats, including static visuals, GIFs, and lightweight motion/animations for educational content.

• Deep familiarity with design systems, including a strong understanding of design tokens, typography scales, component states, and usage best practices.

• Proven ability to support and enhance documentation platforms, guideline websites, or content-heavy design systems.

• Strong understanding of information hierarchy, layout strategy, and designing for scan-based consumption to ensure content accessibility.

• End-to-end product design experience with a pronounced emphasis on UI craftsmanship and aesthetic quality.

• Exceptional attention to detail, with demonstrated comfort in conducting detailed design QA and implementation reviews.

• Experience collaborating effectively with engineering teams during the design handoff and build phases.

• Ability to work independently, make informed decisions, and proactively solve problems with minimal direct oversight. Preferred Skills:

• Experience working with Content Management System (CMS) platforms for content deployment and management.

• Background contributing directly to design system documentation or dedicated guideline portals.

• Familiarity with AI-assisted design workflows to accelerate production, ideation, and asset generation.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Required Skills" emphasize a blend of creative talent (illustration, visual communication) and technical/systemic understanding (design systems, tokens, QA). The "Preferred Skills" indicate a forward-thinking approach, valuing efficiency through AI and experience with content management which is crucial for operationalizing documentation.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Design System Documentation Examples: Showcase projects where you have documented or enhanced design system components, patterns, or guidelines. This should include examples of how you translated technical specifications into user-friendly content.

• Visual Asset Creation: Include a range of original illustrations, icons, UI elements, and templates created specifically for documentation or educational purposes, demonstrating versatility and skill.

• Information Hierarchy & Layout: Provide examples that clearly demonstrate your ability to organize complex information logically and present it through effective layout strategies, particularly for scan-based consumption.

• Design QA & Implementation: Showcase instances where you provided detailed feedback to engineering on UI implementation, highlighting your attention to detail and ability to ensure pixel-perfect execution.

Process Documentation:

• Workflow Design & Optimization: Demonstrate how you have approached the process of creating or improving workflows for generating and maintaining design documentation, emphasizing efficiency and clarity.

• System Implementation Standards: Include examples of how you have worked to ensure consistency and adherence to established design system standards within documentation, from component updates to overarching visual frameworks.

• Measurement & Performance Analysis: While not directly responsible for user research, show how you might conceptually approach measuring the effectiveness of documentation or how you've incorporated feedback loops for continuous improvement in visual guidance.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a role focused on operationalizing design systems through documentation, a portfolio is critical. It needs to go beyond typical UI/UX case studies and specifically highlight the ability to communicate complex design rules clearly and visually, and to work effectively with engineering on implementation.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $45.00 - $60.00 per hour.

Benefits:

• Medical, Dental & Vision insurance.

• Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital coverage.

• 401(k) Retirement Plan (Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contribution options).

• Voluntary Life Insurance & Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D) for employee and dependents.

• Short and Long-Term Disability coverage.

• Health Spending Account (HSA).

• Transportation benefits.

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

• Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation, or Sick Leave).

Working Hours: 40 hours per week, with a preference for alignment with Eastern Time (EST) working hours.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is specified as hourly for a contractor role. The benefits listed are typical for contract positions through a staffing agency like TEKsystems, providing a comprehensive package to attract talent for this specialized role. Alignment with EST working hours is noted, which is important for collaboration with teams in that timezone.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Technology Services & Staffing (TEKsystems is a major player in IT staffing and consulting). The role itself is within a client project, likely in a tech-focused organization that utilizes design systems.

Company Size: TEKsystems is part of Allegis Group, a global leader with 80,000 employees and operations across North America, Europe, and Asia, working with over 6,000 clients. This indicates a robust organizational structure and extensive client network.

Founded: TEKsystems was founded in 1994. Their long history suggests stability and a deep understanding of the technology services market.

Team Structure:

• The role is part of a project team, likely within a larger client organization's design or engineering department. It involves close collaboration with design leadership and engineering teams.

• The reporting structure for this contractor role will be managed through TEKsystems, with day-to-day direction and project oversight coming from the client's hiring manager or team lead.

• Cross-functional collaboration is central, with a strong emphasis on partnering with engineering to ensure accurate implementation and with design leadership for strategic alignment. Methodology:

• Data Analysis and Insights: While the designer won't conduct user research, the role implies an understanding of how design decisions impact user adoption and system consistency, often informed by data.

• Workflow Planning and Optimization: The role requires optimizing the process of creating and disseminating design guidance, focusing on efficiency and clarity.

• Automation and Efficiency Practices: A preference for AI-assisted design workflows highlights a drive towards leveraging technology to improve operational efficiency in design asset production.

Company Website: https://careers.teksystems.com/us/en

📝 Enhancement Note: Understanding TEKsystems' position as a large staffing and services firm is key. This role is a contract position for a client of TEKsystems. The "Company Culture" and "Team Structure" sections are therefore framed around the likely environment within the end-client organization, as managed and supported by TEKsystems.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role can be seen as a specialized mid-to-senior level contributor within the broader GTM operations or product development lifecycle. It requires advanced skills in visual design and systems thinking, with a focus on operationalizing design principles. The "Senior" designation implies the ability to work autonomously and influence design implementation.

Reporting Structure: As a contractor, the individual will report to a hiring manager or design lead at the client organization for project-specific tasks and guidance. TEKsystems will likely provide HR and administrative support. Day-to-day work involves close collaboration with engineers and potentially other designers.

Operations Impact: The impact of this role is significant:

• Consistency & Scalability: By maintaining and enhancing the HIG website, the designer ensures a consistent visual language and user experience across all products and platforms, which is crucial for brand integrity and user trust.

• Efficiency: Clear, well-designed documentation speeds up the development process for designers and engineers, reducing ambiguity and rework.

• Adoption: A best-in-class HIG website drives adoption of the design system, leading to more cohesive product development and faster feature delivery.

Growth Opportunities:

• Expanded Scope: Successful performance could lead to opportunities to contribute to other aspects of the design system or documentation initiatives within the client organization.

• Skill Development: Exposure to advanced design system management, AI-assisted design tools, and collaboration with large engineering teams offers significant learning opportunities.

• Leadership Potential: While a contractor role, demonstrating strong ownership and strategic thinking could lead to opportunities for leading smaller documentation projects or mentoring junior designers on the client side.

📝 Enhancement Note: The growth analysis focuses on how a contractor can leverage this role for skill development and potential future opportunities, both within the client organization (if extensions are possible) or by building a stronger portfolio for future contract or full-time roles.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The job description states "This is a fully remote position." This implies a virtual work environment, eliminating the need for physical office presence.

Office Location(s): While the job is listed as located in Warren, Michigan, the "Workplace Type" explicitly clarifies it as "fully remote." This suggests that while the employer may have a physical presence or legal entity in Michigan, the role is performed entirely from a remote location, likely within the United States given the derived remote location data.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Environment: The role emphasizes close partnership with engineering and design leadership, indicating a highly collaborative virtual environment. Regular video calls, Slack/Teams communication, and shared digital workspaces will be essential.

• Tools & Technology: Access to and proficiency with standard design software (e.g., Figma, Sketch), collaboration tools (e.g., Slack, Zoom, Teams), and potentially CMS platforms will be expected.

• Team Interaction: Opportunities for interaction will be through scheduled meetings, design reviews, and ad-hoc digital communication channels, fostering a connected remote team dynamic.

Work Schedule: A standard 40-hour work week is expected, with flexibility often inherent in remote roles, though alignment with Eastern Time (EST) working hours is preferred for synchronous collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit mention of "fully remote" overrides the Michigan location for the actual work environment. This is a key detail for candidates to understand. The context focuses on how a remote work environment will facilitate collaboration and productivity for this specific role.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A recruiter (likely from TEKsystems) will conduct an initial screening to assess basic qualifications, experience, and alignment with the role's requirements.

• Portfolio Review & Technical Interview: Candidates will present their portfolio, focusing on relevant examples of design system documentation, illustration, and visual communication. This will likely involve a discussion about their design process, problem-solving approach, and experience with design systems and engineering collaboration.

• Hiring Manager/Team Interview: An interview with the client's hiring manager or design lead to assess fit with the team, understanding of the HIG website's purpose, and ability to execute on the responsibilities.

• Potential Design Challenge: A small design exercise or case study might be given to evaluate specific skills, such as translating a guideline into a visual asset or proposing a layout for a documentation page.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate for Relevance: Select projects that directly showcase your experience with design systems, documentation, illustration, and collaboration with engineering. Highlight projects similar to HIG websites.

• Tell a Story: For each project, explain the problem, your approach, the tools used, your specific contributions, and the outcome. Emphasize how your work improved clarity, consistency, or efficiency.

• Quantify Impact: Where possible, use metrics or qualitative feedback to demonstrate the impact of your work (e.g., "improved clarity of component usage," "reduced ambiguity for engineers").

• Highlight Process: Show your thought process, including sketches, wireframes, iterations, and how you incorporated feedback.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand Design Systems: Be prepared to discuss core concepts like design tokens, type scales, component states, and their importance in documentation.

• Practice Concise Communication: Focus on clear, direct communication, especially when explaining complex visual concepts or technical details.

• Demonstrate Problem-Solving: Be ready to articulate how you would tackle specific challenges presented in the role, such as simplifying complex guidelines or creating new visual assets.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview and portfolio review process for a specialized design role like this will heavily rely on demonstrating practical skills and experience. The advice is tailored to showcase the specific competencies required for operationalizing design systems.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design Software: Proficiency in industry-standard design tools such as Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD is essential for creating UI assets, illustrations, and layouts. Figma is particularly common for collaborative design system work.

• Illustration & Graphics: Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop) for creating original illustrations, icons, and complex visual assets.

• Prototyping Tools: While not explicitly stated, tools like Figma or InVision for creating interactive prototypes or animated examples may be beneficial.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While direct responsibility for analytics is limited, understanding how design impacts user engagement metrics on documentation sites is valuable. Familiarity with analytics platforms (e.g., Google Analytics) might be a plus for understanding usage patterns. CRM & Automation:

• CMS Platforms: Experience with Content Management Systems (CMS) is listed as a "Nice to Have," indicating that familiarity with platforms used for publishing website content would be advantageous.

• Collaboration & Communication: Tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Jira are critical for remote collaboration, task management, and communication with engineering and design teams.

• Design System Management Tools: Familiarity with specific platforms or workflows used to manage and distribute design system documentation.

📝 Enhancement Note: The tool stack focuses on the creative and collaborative aspects of the role. Emphasis is placed on design software and communication tools, with a note on CMS as a preferred skill, reflecting the documentation-heavy nature of the position.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Consistency: A core value, evident in the need to maintain and evolve the HIG website to ensure uniform design application across all products.

• Clarity & Usability: The role demands translating complex information into easily understandable visual guidance, emphasizing user-centric design principles for documentation.

• Collaboration: Strong partnership with engineering and design leadership is crucial for successful implementation and adoption of design standards.

• Detail-Oriented Execution: Meticulous attention to detail is required for visual QA, asset creation, and ensuring pixel-perfect fidelity.

• Efficiency & Scalability: The role values creating scalable visual frameworks and leveraging tools (like AI) to improve the efficiency of design asset production for documentation.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: The role necessitates deep integration with engineering teams, acting as a bridge between design intent and development reality for documentation.

• Process Review & Feedback: A culture of continuous feedback is implied, with ongoing design reviews and QA to iterate on documentation and visual assets.

• Knowledge Sharing: The HIG website itself is a knowledge-sharing tool. The designer's role is to make this knowledge accessible and actionable for all stakeholders.

📝 Enhancement Note: The team culture and values are inferred from the description's emphasis on collaboration, detail, and the operational goal of creating a high-quality, user-friendly documentation resource. These values are critical for success in a role that bridges creative and operational functions.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Translating Complexity: The primary challenge is simplifying dense, technical design guidelines into clear, actionable visual content for a diverse audience (designers, engineers).

• Maintaining Consistency at Scale: Ensuring visual consistency across a large documentation website and potentially across multiple products requires rigorous attention to detail and strong system thinking.

• Balancing Speed and Quality: Working in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment while maintaining high standards for visual craftsmanship and accuracy.

• Remote Collaboration Dynamics: Effectively collaborating and communicating design intent and feedback within a fully remote setting requires proactive communication and strong interpersonal skills.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Design System Expertise: Deepen knowledge of design system architecture, tokens, and best practices by working on a large-scale HIG.

• Advanced Visual Design: Enhance skills in illustration, motion graphics, and creating engaging visual content for educational purposes.

• AI-Assisted Design: Gain practical experience with AI tools for design acceleration, understanding their capabilities and limitations in a professional context.

• Cross-functional Partnership: Improve collaboration and communication skills by working closely with engineering and design leadership on a critical GTM operational asset.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are framed around the core responsibilities, highlighting the inherent difficulties in operationalizing design. Growth opportunities focus on skill enhancement directly related to the role's requirements and the evolving landscape of design technology.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach translating a complex, text-heavy guideline about spacing or typography into visually understandable assets for our HIG website?" (Focus on process, examples, and clarity)

• "Describe a time you collaborated with engineers to implement design elements. What were the key challenges, and how did you ensure pixel-perfect execution?" (Focus on collaboration, problem-solving, and detail)

• "Imagine you need to create a new illustration style for our design system documentation that is both unique and scalable. What would be your initial steps and considerations?" (Focus on creative process, system thinking, and scalability) Company & Culture Questions:

• "What do you know about TEKsystems or the type of organizations that typically use design system documentation?" (Shows research and understanding of the context)

• "How do you typically stay updated on design system trends and best practices, especially in a remote work environment?" (Assesses proactivity and commitment to learning)

• "Our HIG website is crucial for consistency. How would you ensure your work aligns with the broader brand and design system goals?" (Focus on strategic alignment and brand stewardship) Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Highlight HIG-Relevant Projects: Prioritize examples that showcase your work on documentation, design systems, illustration for technical content, or complex UI implementation.

• Structure Your Narrative: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, your process, the tools used, and the impact achieved. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).

• Demonstrate Visual Craftsmanship: Be prepared to zoom in on details, explain your design choices, and discuss your illustration techniques.

• Showcase Collaboration: Point out instances where you worked closely with engineers, product managers, or other stakeholders, detailing how you managed feedback and iteration.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation advice is tailored to the specific demands of a visual designer role focused on operationalizing design systems through documentation. It emphasizes practical skills, collaborative abilities, and a strategic understanding of the role's impact.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this operations position:

• Submit your application through the TEKsystems careers portal for the Visual Designer role.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Ensure your online portfolio prominently features projects demonstrating your experience with design systems, HIG documentation, illustration, and complex visual communication. Tailor your presentation to highlight your ability to translate technical guidelines into accessible visual assets.

• Optimize Your Resume: Highlight keywords from the job description such as "Human Interface Guidelines," "Design Systems," "Visual Communication," "Illustration," "UI Craftsmanship," "Design QA," and "Collaboration with Engineering." Quantify achievements where possible, focusing on efficiency and consistency improvements.

• Prepare Your Presentation: Practice walking through 2-3 key portfolio projects that best align with the role's requirements. Be ready to discuss your process, challenges, and how you ensured pixel-perfect implementation and clear communication of design intent.

• Research TEKsystems and the Client Landscape: Understand TEKsystems' role as a staffing partner and be prepared to discuss your understanding of why organizations invest in robust design system documentation and how this role contributes to that objective.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.

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